Christians Forced from Iraq Now Face Persecution in Turkey

Thousands of Christian refugees who fled their homes in Iraq due to persecution are only finding more persecution in Turkish refugee camps.

ChristianToday.com reports that about 45,000 refugees who fled Iraq are now living in poverty in Turkey and are discriminated against by their Muslim neighbors.

Juliana Taimoorazy, president of the Iraqi Christian Relief Council and a senior fellow with the Philos Project, discussed the stark plight of the Christians.

They cannot reveal their faith, she said, because then their Muslim neighbors would persecute them. She added that mosques would also refuse to help them if their Christian faith was made known.

The refugees are hoping to come to the U.S. or another country where they would be able to live out their faith without fear, but the U.S. State Department is slow to take any action to help them.

Taimoorazy said it may be up to churches to do something about this humanitarian crisis.

“There have been some churches that extended help, financial or prayer, but this is such a monumental situation that we need more churches to wake up," she said.

One way Christians can help the refugees is to hold prayer vigils, Taimoorazy said. Her organization has even provided a prayer vigil kit called “Rise Vigil” for Christians to use to raise awareness for their brothers and sisters in Christ in the Middle East.

"If we don't talk to our fellow Americans, our fellow Christians, in our churches, and if we don't pray unitedly for the body of Christ, the Middle East will be empty of Christians," she warned.